Lemony Sheath Dress

Can't you just hear Pee-Wee Herman now? "Mmmm, Leee-mony!" I kept hearing his voice in my head as I was sewing this dress! I am crazy for both Pee-Wee and lemon prints, so I was super excited that this one was chosen to be in my spring fabric collection. It's a 100% cotton sateen, opaque with a soft drape.

Black Sateen Lemon Print

I decided this print needed a simple, classic dress silhouette, so I decided on a summer sheath dress. The pattern is from Gertie's Ultimate Dress Book. I matched the strapless bodice with the pencil skirt, and made two simple straps to go with it.

The dress made its debut for Viva Las Vegas! I've never been before, and it was so cool to see everyone done up Rockabilly style. I tried to make my hair and makeup as '50s fabulous as possible, though the windy days made me wish I had invested in better hairspray.

Of course, flats are essential when doing a lot of walking!

Construction-wise, the only complicated thing about this dress is the bodice. It's both lined and underlined in black Kona cotton, and then boning channels are sewn to the lining layer. Steel boning is inserted throughout. I find boning to be essential for a dress like this, because it keeps a closely fitted bodice smooth throughout. Ten rows is my minimum for this bodice design, and that's what I used here. The most important placement points, in my opinion, are over the princess seams, side seams, diagonally on each side of the bust, and on either side of the zipper. 

Here's the inside of the dress. I didn't line the skirt, because I loved how the fabric drapes on its own and I didn't plan to wear hosiery with the dress. 

 I lightened this one a bit so you can see the boning channels.

I love how the boning keeps the back of the bodice smooth. I used a lapped zipper, my preferred method. 

This print is also available with a blue background on a cotton lawn. It has a lighter, almost gauzy feel to it, and I'm definitely going to make a full-skirted dress with it. 

This dress uses the same bodice and skirt pattern as two other dresses in the book! Can you see the basic similarity?

Faux Sarong Dress, Gertie's Ultimate Dress Book

Fringed Cocktail Dress, Gertie's Ultimate Dress Book

The latter two use the sweetheart option on the bodice, rather than the straight neckline. But see how much you can do with some different straps and trims, using the same bodice and skirt?